“One Flea Spare” with Connective Theatre Company

Connective Theatre Company has debuted on the Chicago storefront theatre scene with its inaugural production of One Flea Spare by Naomi Wallace. For this production, Connective Theatre Company has partnered with RefugeeOne (a local refugee resettlement organization) to raise awareness about refugee displacement. Co-directed by Brian Zane (who also treads the stage in this production) and Ashley Joy, the play takes place in 17th century London and unfurls over the course of 28 days. If this first show is indicative of the work to come from this company, then it’s a plague that I’ll gladly get infected by. 

Force Fed Food; Force Fed Beliefs

Hitler’s Tasters – North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie

The second in the lineup for North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie’s Feature Series Summer 2019 Season, “Hitler’s Tasters” runs from July 5th to July 14th. Written by Michelle Kholos Brooks, the show is a dark comedy inspired by true stories and directed by Sarah Norris. Four women take the stage as they are tasked with the stressful order of tasting Adolf Hitler’s food before he consumes it himself to make sure that it is safe and unpoisoned. After completing its run in Chicago, this production will travel to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August. This incisive look at how young women aren’t treated well in any age or country only runs for two weekends, so get your tickets NOW. 

When Barbarism Meets Technology

Wiesenthal – The True Story of Nazi-Hunter Simon Wiesenthal – North Shore Center for the Performing Arts

North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie has kicked off their Feature Series Summer 2019 Season with “Wiesenthal – The True Story of Nazi-Hunter Simon Wiesenthal.” Tom Dugan takes the stage in a tour de force performance with a production that exhibits uniformity in quality across the board: material, performance, stagecraft, and motivation. I am planting a seed in your mind that you should purchase tickets now because there are only performances June 27th through June 30th, and I will reiterate it later in case you have forgotten. 

“Ms. Blakk For President” at Steppenwolf Theatre Company

Ms. Black for President – Steppenwolf Theatre

Steppenwolf has kicked off the early summer with a one-of-a-kind theatrical experience, Ms. Blakk for President, which brings the audience along Ms. Blakk’s run for United States President, an endeavor that started as an attempt to bring awareness to the AIDS crisis and queer issues and make it to the floor of the Democratic National Convention. Marketed as play, party, and campaign rally, the entire evening includes a pre-show party, art-displays, historical timelines, and a one-hour and forty minute long play that introduced the audience to Ms. Joan Jett Blakk, the drag name of Terence Alan Smith. Tina Landau directed while also co-writing the script with Tarell Alvin McCraney, who portrays the title character.  

Politics: Hilarious AND Terrifying

The Ridiculous Darkness – Sideshow Theatre Company

The history of “The Ridiculous Darkness” is RIDICULOUSLY long and tumbling. At its birth, it was a novel written and published in 1899 called “The Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad. Most famously it was adapted for screen, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and retitled “Apocalypse Now.” In 2012, German writer Wolfram Lots adapted the story for radio, and since then, Lots’ adaptation has become one of the most produced German plays.

History That’s Not Facts

My Name is Rachel Corrie – Jacaranda Collective

Jacaranda Collective, a multi-media production company, premiered its first production, My Name is Rachel Corrie, at The Den Theatre on March 22nd. It was a one-woman show performed by Associate Artistic Director, Halie Robinson, and directed by Artistic Director, Sam Bianchini. Let’s take a moment to appreciate that a woman’s tale was being told by a woman with direction by women.

“An Oak Tree” with Red Theater Chicago

An Oak Tree – Red Theatre

“An Oak Tree” had its Midwest premiere at the Athenaeum on November 3rd with Red Theater Chicago. The script by Tim Crouch includes two actors, one who has rehearsed the play and a second who has never even laid eyes upon it. The performance questions reality and how we deal with it, or evade it. On opening night, the rehearsed actor, also called THE HYPNOTIST, was played by Gage Wallace, who will continue for the run of the show, and the first volunteer actor was Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel. Directed meticulously by Jeremy Aluma, the performance left me speechless and has me tormentedly, but happily, baffled still to this day.

“Arms and the Man” with City Lit

Arms and the Man – City Lit

City Lit has opened their 2018-2019 season with “Arms and the Man,” directed by Brian Pastor, who has appeared in several shows at City Lit himself (The Body Snatchers and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow). “Arms and the Man” is a comedy written by George Bernard Shaw, first performed and published in 1894, and considered to be his first commercial hit.

“Spring Awakening” with Blank Theatre Company

Spring Awakening – Blank Theatre Company

Blank Theatre has opened their inaugural season with the musical “Spring Awakening.” This complex musical, originally performed on Broadway in 2006, is based on the equally, if not more, controversial 1891 play by Frank Wedekind. This reiterates the fact that society has been plagued by convoluted opinions about sex since the dawn of time and will most likely continue until our demise.